While Thinking of the Past, Curley Can Look to the Future

New Hampshire Motor Speedway coverage presented by RPM Racing Engines

LOUDON, N.H. -- American-Canadian Tour President Tom Curley looked over a crowd of about 65 people on Saturday. It was just past noon on September 19, 2009 in Loudon, New Hampshire. ACT and the entire decade-long business model of northeastern Late Model racing was about to debut at the 1-mile track, in front of the most important personalities in stock car racing, and in front of certainly the largest spectator crowd to attend an ACT event. For most of the people in that crowd of 65, everything happening around them that day was happening for the first time.

But Curley was having a bit of déjà vu.

"I remember it like it was yesterday," Curley told the drivers, officials, team members, and media assembled before him. "We had [21 cars]. We had some big names like Beaver and Bobby Dragon, Dave Dion, and Robbie Crouch, but not much else. There were twenty-five thousand seats, and about twenty-five hundred people."

It was September 18, 1982, and Curley had just pulled into Dover Int'l Speedway with what was then known as the NASCAR North Tour. It was his series' first appearance on a superspeedway, running as the support show to the NASCAR Winston Cup Grand National Series. The track's promoter, Dennis McGlynn, had taken what Curley called "a wild gamble" by bringing in a group of New England and Canadian-based racers that had mostly never left the tiny, quarter- and half-mile bullrings of the northeast.

In addition to a thin field of cars and a short head count in the grandstand, the race itself was lackluster. Only ten cars were running at the finish, with just two of them completing the entire 200-lap distance. Randy LaJoie finished fourth, six laps off the pace. Gardiner Leavitt was eighth, 20 laps down. Bobby Dragon posted a ninth-place finish after crashing out 46 laps from the end. After Dion collected the trophy for his victory, McGlynn asked Curley what he wanted to do. Curley suggested McGlynn pay only half of the $43,000-plus purse and let him return home with his tail tucked between his legs. McGlynn wouldn't hear of it.

"It was not a promotional success," Curley says, "but it was a start. [McGlynn] told me after that first race that almost nothing works the first time, and to give it three years and then analyze things."

Sure enough, the NASCAR North Tour returned to Dover in 1983 with, as Curley recalled, 25 cars and 5,000 fans. In 1984, there were 37 cars and 17,000 ticket holders.

Fast forward 27 years and one day to New Hampshire Motor Speedway, where Curley was telling his ACT drivers the story. Like Dover so many years ago, it was the first time for Curley's present group of racers to be racing on a superspeedway. Like Dover, there were important people watching. And like Dover, the promoter, Bruton Smith, had taken a gamble.

Unlike Dover, though, there were 36 cars, most of the region's most recognizable full-fendered short track drivers, and, including those that attended the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and Whelen Modified Tour races earlier in the day, about 40,000 fans in the grandstands.

The ACT drivers ripped off a competitive 50-lap exhibition race, one that was promoted heavily on both sides of the border from last November until post time, with just two cautions in 38 minutes. ACT's traditional pre-race pomp played well into Curley's hands at NHMS; an energetic introduction, followed by the series' traditional wave-off lap with battle flags displayed on the track's edge, pushed the already excited crowd into a football stadium-style cheer. There were multiple passes for the lead, a solid mix of veterans and youngsters -- as in 66 year-old Joey Laquerre taking on 16 year-old Brandon Watson for third place with two laps to go -- an even representation of every part of the region's racers among the top finishers, and a host of track officials that were impressed by the event.

The official New Hampshire Motor Speedway press release following the finish appears to be a good omen for ACT; one of the two short quotes printed from winner Eddie MacDonald was "I'm sure there will be many more ACT Invitationals here," indicating that the series has a place at NHMS in the future. Another report from Green-White-Checker quoted NHMS General Manager Jerry Gappens saying that he was "very impressed" and that he wants to have ACT back at the track.

Tom Curley's mind may have been stuck in 1982 at Dover on Saturday. But it appears he might be better served now spending his time thinking about 2010 at New Hampshire.


(PHOTO: Tom Curley's rocky debut at Dover in 1982 was no match for his successful first event at New Hampshire on Saturday. Photo by Justin St. Louis/VMM)

53 Late Model Teams Invited to Two-Day Practice at NHMS

19 Vermonters to participate in test session

LOUDON, N.H. -- Travis Barrett of Green-White-Checker is reporting that a list of 53 Late Model teams from the American-Canadian Tour and its affiliate tracks and series have been invited to a two-day test session at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H. on Aug. 25/26.

Included on the list are 19 Vermont-based drivers, including ACT Invitational qualifying event winners Eric Williams, Scott Payea, Dave Pembroke, Brent Dragon, John Donahue, and Brian Hoar. Dragon won a Série ACT-Castrol event at Riverside Speedway in Ste-Croix, Qué. to earn his invitation, while Williams, Payea, Pembroke, Donahue, and Hoar got theirs by winning ACT Late Model Tour events.

Drivers invited from Thunder Road in Barre include point leader Jean-Paul Cyr, former track champions Phil Scott, Jamie Fisher, Cris Michaud, and Dave Whitcomb, and weekly regulars Eric Chase and Nick Sweet.

St. Johnsbury driver Stacy Cahoon has been invited from White Mountain Motorsports Park in No. Woodstock, N.H. At-large invitees from the ACT Late Model Tour include Tyler Cahoon, Chip Grenier, and Pete Potvin, III, while Série ACT-Castrol regular Trampas Demers of South Burlington has also been invited to the test.

A handful of drivers on the list have experience at the 1.058-mile New Hampshire Motor Speedway, including Pembroke, Hoar, Scott, Chase, and Cyr. Pembroke and Scott were invovled in the first-ever ACT test at NHMS in April. Chase made his NASCAR Camping World Series East debut there in June, while Cyr has raced there in Camping World and Whelen Modified Tour events.

Hoar brings the most experience to the table, having won the New Hampshire Motor Speedway track championship in 2006 in the Camping World Series East division, and still holds the single-lap qualifying record for the series there, which he set in 2002.

Other notable invitees include qualifying event winners Brad Leighton, Patrick Laperle, Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., J.F. Déry, Donald Theetge, Sean Kennedy, and Eddie MacDonald, former Castrol champion Alexandre Gingras, and "potential point champions" Travis Adams of Oxford Plains (Me.) Speedway, Quinny Welch of White Mountain Motorsports Park, Guy Caron of Twin State Speedway in Claremont, N.H., Wayne Helliwell, Jr. of Lee USA (N.H.) Speedway, Bruce Thomas, Jr. of Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl, Ryan Vanasse of Seekonk (Mass.) Speedway, and Dan McHattie of Kawartha Speedway in Fraserville, Ont.

Qualifying events are still to be held at Twin State, Thunder Road, Riverside, Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y., Autodrome Chaudière in Vallée-Jct., Qué., and Wiscasset (Me.) Raceway. ACT officials will approve the 36 teams that will race in the ACT Invitational on Sept. 19, in conjunction with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sylvania 300 weekend, following the two-day test and qualifying events.

TD BANKNORTH 250: We'll Be There, Not Here

The MotorMag is headed east this weekend for the biggest show of the year, the TD Banknorth 250 at Maine's Oxford Plains Speedway, with stops at Northeastern Speedway and the New England Forest Rally (and, most likely, the Oxford Plains Fun Park for some go-kart racing) along the way.

As we're not totally up on technology's latest advancements, we're probably not going to be able to do the live-update thing, but rather we'll bring you a full recap of the weekend's events after they're over. That is, of course, unless something unexpected happens where we'll have a computer or web-accessible phone that becomes suddenly, magically available.

In the mean time, we highly recommend hanging out at Green-White-Checker and The Backstretch. Travis Barrett and Shawn Courchesne are not only buddies of ours (actually, VMM is more like the annoying younger cousin that only shows up at family reunions), they're the clear-cut leaders in northeastern short track racing coverage, and are sure to be on top of things as they happen.

But, hey, check in here every now and then, too, we might get lucky.

And by the way, thanks to all of our readers out there in the Green Mountains and beyond. According to our stat counter, these last few days have been some of the most successful that this little blog has ever seen. VMM is not quite six months old, but we're encouraged by the positive feedback we've received so far. And we've been very happy (believe it or not) to get the negative feedback, too -- it'll only make us work harder.

So thanks a lot, racers, we love ya!

LAST LAP: A few notes that have nowhere else to go

In a whirlwind couple of weeks, Joey Polewarczyk, Jr.'s name keeps coming up. It seems the youngster is starting to be in high demand, and so is his equipment.

Bob Dillner of SPEED Channel, Speed51.com, and BDI Racing is in the process of reaching an agreement with Polewarczyk to have his driver, Michael Pope of Dublin, Ga., drive a Joey Pole Racing entry -- the same one NASCAR champion Tony Stewart drove at Thunder Road in the CARQUEST Vermont Governor's Cup 150 -- in next month's TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine, and possibly, the ACT Late Model Tour event at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway the following week.

In exchange, Dillner will have Polewarczyk, of Hudson, N.H., drive his PASS South Super Late Model at South Boston Speedway in Virginia for the Mason-Dixon Meltdown on October 17.

Also, we're hearing that we should expect Polewarczyk to make an appearance at the annual Oktoberfest at LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway in Wisconsin one week prior to the Mason-Dixon Meltdown, although the details of that arrangement -- a deal seperate from Dillner's -- are largely unknown at this point, even to Polewarczyk.

It was previously announced that Polewarczyk may also drive in a pair PASS North events at Lee USA Speedway and Seekonk Speedway for Eric DeSouza.

***

Speaking of the TD Banknorth 250, Travis Barrett of Green-White-Checker is reporting that NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Steven Wallace will race a Kendall Roberts-owned National Guard entry in the event as a teammate to White Mountain 150 winner John Donahue.

***

Cam Clairmont had Christmas come early this year. The Super Street driver at White Mountain Motorsports Park won his division's feature on Saturday night, but only after some lucky breaks. Early leader Jourdan Davis was black-flagged for a water leak, then Tyler Alati flat-out dumped leader Derek O'Hearn on lap 13, with both drivers going to the rear of the field for the subsequent restart. Clairmont, the new leader, then outlasted an outside-lane bid from Tim Churchill to take the win. Tom Keith won the Strictly Stock feature, with Opie Thayer taking Strictly Stock Mini checkers. Lucas Wheeler won the Kids Truck feature.

***

Three members of RPM Motorsports are lucky to be alive after a collision with a moose on Saturday night near Littleton, N.H. Ander Cary, Corey Forest, and Chris Burnett, crew members for the Rick Paya-owned team that fields ACT Late Model Tour entries for Brian Hoar, Mike Olsen, and Jason Bonnett, struck a young bull moose on Interstate 93 on the way back from White Mountain Motorsports Park. The roof of the Dodge Charger they were riding in was peeled back to the back seat of the car, but fortunately no injuries were sustained by any of the three men, other than bumps, bruises, and small cuts from shattered glass.

***

Tony Stewart has been a busy guy this weekend. After his race at Thunder Road on Thursday and all the stuff he does regularly on the NASCAR trail, this weekend at Loudon, N.H., Stewart flew to Plattsburgh, N.Y. and made a surprise visit to Airborne Speedway on Saturday night to help his development driver, Jessica Zemken, with her Modified for the double-points 30-lap feature. In her debut at Airborne, Zemken finished a respectable 12th.

Patrick Dupree earned his first win of the season after leader Leon Gonyo was forced to pit during a caution period with three laps remaining. Martin Roy finished second with Mike Bruno of Castelton third. Robin Wood -- who has a $100 bounty on his head for anyone that can beat him -- won his fourth-straight Sportsman feature. Other winners were Randy LaDue (Renegade), "Slow" Rick Doner (Mini-Modified), and Jayson Blondo (Bomber).

Stewart 'excited' about Governor's Cup

Two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart is still excited about his upcoming trip to Barre's Thunder Road on June 25 for the CARQUEST Vermont Governor's Cup 150.

Travis Barrett of Green-White-Checker is at Dover, Del. for this weekend's Sprint Cup Series Autism Speaks 400, and spoke with Stewart about the Thunder Road event. Click here to read the story.

The Juice: Ten Things, Lots of Modifieds, and Who's Quinny?

-by Justin St. Louis

We're one race down, about 60 to go, give or take a few. And we couldn't be any happier about it! Here's this week's "Juice"...

***

Brad Leighton winning the first starting spot for the ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway has its positives and negatives. The pros are that Leighton is a top-name driver, a proven winner at NHMS, has first-class equipment, and will represent ACT, northeastern Late Model racing, and NHMS well. The cons -- there are far fewer cons than pros -- are that Leighton (right, Eric LaFleche/VLFRacing.com photo) is just a part-timer with ACT, that he is one of the guys that everyone expects to dominate at NHMS, that now the "little" teams that make it in will have to work that much harder to beat him, and that as ACT-type race teams go, his is one of the few "superteams" that sort of -- sort of -- makes the purist, underdog-loving race fan go, "Oh, well, Leighton's in, so guys like (name a 5th-place driver at your local track) might as well not even show up."

But actually, thinking further about it, how is that possibly a bad thing? A little team should have to work harder to beat the champions and the proven winners. It should be a motivation piece, not a deterrent. Imagine this: Timmy Jordan from Waterford Speedbowl gets into the ACT Invitational, or how about young Brandon Watson up at Kawartha Speedway, or Ryan Vanasse at Seekonk Speedway, and one of those guys actually breaks into the winner's circle at Loudon. And say Brad Leighton, the guy no one is supposed to be able to beat, finishes second. Would that not be a major victory for short track racers everywhere?

The more we, as nitpickers, try to find something wrong with the ACT Invitational at NHMS, the more we simply can't find anything wrong with it.

***

We noticed a lot of things at the ACT season opener last weekend, and here are ten of them in no particular order:

1. The concentration of top-tier Vermont-based teams is shrinking. In fact, there were only three native Vermonters (Scott Payea, John Donahue, Brian Hoar) to finish inside the top-ten in the NH Governor's Cup 150. The same thing happened twice at Oxford Plains Speedway last year, and there were only four Green Mountain racers in the top-ten at Lee USA (and a few other tracks) last year. In the grand scheme of it all, that's a very good sign.

2. Is there no more ACT partnership with Toyota? The pace car on hand was the Dodge Charger, and the Toyota logos are now gone from the ACT website and the official Race Report. Maybe we answered our own question, we'll have to see at Thunder Road.

3. The number of drivers known for their success in other areas now participating in ACT is growing more and more. You can add former Busch North Series standout Mike Johnson and southern New England stars Fred Astle and Jeff Zuidema to the list.

4. When announcer John Spence asked the crowd if anyone was cheering for the Montréal Canadiens, I was the only person that stood up. And now I know why.

5. Two big surprises -- Joey Laquerre showed up, and Claude Leclerc didn't. Kinda weird.

6. How awesome was that Hobby Stock guy Chris Titcomb that finished third? (right, Alan Ward photo)

7. Why isn't J.R. Baril a stronger force to be reckoned with when the ACT guys come to his house? Larry Gelinas, Wayne Helliwell, Ricky Wolf, Jeremy Harclerode, and occasionally Bryan Kruczek have run well against the Tour teams, but when ACT is at Lee USA, multi-time champion Baril (also a multi-time winner of long distance events at various tracks and a former PASS North regular) has sort of... just... been there.

8. You know, Cris Michaud really wasn't that far off on Sunday. It was only the first race with the Ford engine, and really, 15th isn't bad after a 150-lap show with an unraced, unproven combination. We're hoping that ACT's decision to hold off on approving the engine for competition won't last too much longer. Michaud admits that his driving style hasn't adapted yet to the different power curve of the Ford engine, and that changes in setup, like adding more gear (Michaud said his team ran 20 more points than normal in the gear ratio at Lee to try and make the car better) might help. It's a work-in-progress, just like the Chevrolet engine Michaud helped to develop in 1999 and 2000. Give it a few weeks, and you'll see a front-running Ford, just like when Phil Scott won in his second start with the Chevy engine against the "big motors" in 2000.

9. Tyler Cahoon could really surprise some people this year.

10. God bless those weekly guys that came to Lee from places like Oxford and White Mountain and Wiscasset and Waterford to just have a chance at sniffing an invite to Loudon, N.H. and the 1-mile New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Guys like Shawn Martin, Travis Stearns, Glenn Martel, Mark Anzalone, and Corey Morgan. And God bless the guys that are giving the touring thing a shot for the same reason, like Miles Chipman and Rowland Robinson. That's what the whole NHMS event is about, and the race fans are going to be the big winners because of it.

***

VMM: "That was quite a battle you had with Quinny."

Eddie MacDonald: "Who's Quinny?"

MacDonald was surely not the only one asking that question after the NH Governor's Cup 150 last Sunday. Quinny Welch, in case you hadn't heard, is one of the top Late Model racers at White Mountain Motorsports Park, having won the track title there in 2007, and finishing a close second last year, but he doesn't get out much. Welch made a surprise visit to Lee USA to see how well he stacked up this year, and went home with a fine fifth-place finish, the first ACT top-five of his career. He ran either nose-to-tail or side-by-side with home-track hero MacDonald for the final 75 laps of the race, tha pair swapping the fourth and fifth positions several times. (Photo left: Welch (#78) and MacDonald (#17) going at it. Alan Ward photo)

"It was a helluva run, I wasn't expecting it," said Welch. "We started out really tight (but) were just a little better than all of the guys in front of us, and all of a sudden it kicked in and got some wicked good bite on the top side. Then we got to MacDonald, we battled with him for the whole race and it was very good, it was clean. To race with him here is pretty impressive for us. It's pretty cool. The guys did a great job, and all weekend long we were pretty good, we made the right choices, and there we were."

With a shoestring budget, Welch put a plan in place for the season -- and he, just like virtually everyone else with a Late Model, wants to race at NHMS -- but may have to change his direction if he keeps running well with ACT.

"I want to run White Mountain full-time to try to get to Loudon, but if we keep running like we are right now we might get a shot at Loudon before we have to run a whole season to do it," he said. "My goal was to start the first three (ACT races). If we made it here we could go to Thunder Road, and we made it, so we'll go to Thunder Road in two weeks, and then I'd really like to go to Plattsburgh (Airborne Speedway). I think that's a track that's suited for me, and nobody else has been there yet so I think we'll have a good shot at that one."

In his rare ventures outside his home track, Welch has run very well; last year, he finished eighth in the Milk Bowl at Thunder Road, and won a 100-lap Late Model open at Riverside Speedway. Those results, plus the top-five finish at Lee and the battle with MacDonald -- one of the hottest things on east coast short tracks these days -- should give Welch the confidence he will need to go with the skill his team has displayed so far. A great candidate, in our opinion, for one of the "at-large" bids for the ACT Invitational at NHMS, should he not earn a guaranteed starting berth otherwise.

***

Danville's Steven Legendre, as we had reported a week or so ago, is now racing with the PASS North Series. Legendre made his debut in the Super Late Model ranks at Speedway 95 near Bangor, Me. on Sunday, finishing a respectable 15th, the final car on the lead lap.

Defending PASS North Champion Johnny Clark won the NAPA 150 after passing Richie Dearborn and Cassius Clark with less than 15 laps remaining to take the opening day victory, the 17th of his PASS North career. Cassuis Clark capitalized after contact with Dearborn moved him up to second place; Scott Chubbuck also slipped by for third. Dearborn, who led much of the race, finished fourth ahead of Adam Bates. Derek Ramstrom, Chris Staples, John Flemming, Ben Rowe, and Donnie Whitten completed the top ten in order.

***

How cool is this?

Dan Bowes (silver #25), Justin Belfiore (black #98), and defending Lee USA Speedway champion Eddie Witkum, Jr. (white #39) raced here for the lead just inches apart near the halfway point. Bowes would hold off Belfiore for the victory.

You have got to respect anyone that can wrestle a 700-horsepower bullet around a 3/8-mile track, averaging laps about 100 miles per hour, and not wreck the guy outside of him. Too bad we didn't get any footage when they were THREE wide.

***

Brett "The Jet" Hearn of Sussex, N.J. won the 35-lap season opening 358 Modified event at Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y. on Friday, ahead of Ronnie Johnson and Matt DeLorenzo. Middlebury's Todd Stone finished in fifth place, with Dave Camara of Fair Haven in seventh. Airborne Speedway promoter Mike Perrotte of Elizabethtown, N.Y. finished 10th.

Derrick McGrew of Ballston Spa, N.Y. won the 25-lap Budget Sportsman race with rookie Tim Hartman second in his first-ever open-wheel race. Manchester's Frank Hoard, III finished third. Rob Yetman of Castleton, N.Y. won the Pro Stock feature for his first career victory, while Dan Petronis of Mechanicville, N.Y. won the Limited feature.

***

The True Value Modified Racing Series kicks off its sixth season (sixth, already?) at Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, N.H. on Saturday with the Bond Auto Parts Spring Dash 100 beginning at 6:00pm.

Kirk Alexander of nearby West Swanzey, N.H. is among the expected entries for the event, and has taken 14 of his series-leading 31 victories at the high-banked 1/4-mile. Les Hinckley of Windsor Locks, Conn. and Ascutney's Dwight Jarvis are also expected for the race; Hinckley has three TVMRS wins at Monadnock, while Jarvis has won twice there in TVMRS competition, including the Spring Dash in 2006. Jarvis is also a five-time Monadnock Speedway track champion.

Along with the TVMRS troops, the "Mad Dog" will see its Outlaw Pro, Super Stock, Mini Stock, and 4-cylinder and full-size Enduro divisions open the curtain on their 2009 seasons.

***

Speaking of the True Value Modifieds, the series has cancelled its May 16 event at All-Star Speedway in Epping, N.H. All-Star promoter Bobby MacArthur had been in some hot water with the Town of Epping, and seems to have sorted the situation out in time to open his season as scheduled, but will not see the TVMRS cars at his track this year.

The Town of Epping initially refused MacArthur's operating license application due to several unaddressed issues, including the storage of between 300 and 400 used tires on the speedway's grounds. MacArthur's permit to hold stock car racing events has since been granted, but not in time for the powers that be in the TVMRS office to keep their faith in those at the All-Star Speedway office.

***

Andy Seuss of Hampstead, N.H. took his second NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour win in four events this year, beating George Brunnhoelzl at Lanier National Speedway in Georgia... and again, the car count was deplorable. While Seuss had plenty of tough competition from top drivers Brunnhoelzl, Ted Christopher, and L.W. Miller, there wasn't much else. A dismal 14 cars showed up to compete at Lanier.

The WSMT is off until July 3 at Caraway Speedway, when it makes its second of six trips to the Asheboro, N.C. half-mile. If the number-one Modified division in the southern United States is going to survive, it's going to need to a little better than fields of 16, 20, 26, and 14 cars. We'll see if the early summer vacation will help the some of the missing teams get some legs underneath them and help the struggling series finish the year strong.

***

Okay, okay, okay, the Burger King likes square butts and he cannot lie. We get it.

We'll see you at the races!

ACT Champion Laperle to Skip Lee USA Opener

American-Canadian Tour Champion Patrick Laperle will not be present at the series' 2009 season opener at Lee USA (N.H.) Speedway this weekend. Laperle announced in February that he would not defend his ACT Late Model Tour title and confirmed Thursday that he won't be making the five-hour haul from his St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Que. home to the New Hampshire seacoast this weekend, but will likely be at the next two events at Thunder Road and Airborne Speedway in May.

After winning the Série ACT-Castrol championship in 2007, Laperle ran a part-time schedule with the Québec/Ontario-based tour last year. One of the races he ran was the season opener at Autodrome St-Eustache, which he won. He will not repeat the feat this weekend with the ACT Late Model Tour at Lee.

"(Lee is) two days with practice on Saturday and the race on Sunday, and it's a long trip for us. It would cost us a lot, and it only pays $2,000 to win," said Laperle. "We want to win at Thunder Road for the 50th anniversary, I'm saving my car for Thunder Road. I can't wait to see the new Airborne, plus it's the closest track to home in the U.S., and we'll be at St-Eustache (the Castrol opener on May 23) for sure."

Laperle had originally planned to hit only big-money events on both sides of the border with the ACT Late Model Tour, the Série ACT-Castrol, and the Pro All Stars Series. His Super Late Model car intended for PASS competition, however, was badly wrecked in Florida during New Smyrna Speedway's World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing two months ago and is still in need of repair. And like several drivers in the northeast, Laperle has a new Late Model car under construction, designed specifically for the inaugural ACT Invitational event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September by short track legend Junior Hanley.

With his plans changing due to the Super Late Model's current state, Laperle said he may return to the Série ACT-Castrol full-time. Plans right now hinge on the level of support his sponsor, Normand Girard of JPN Racing, will commit to.

"I don't know what he wants to do, so I guess we will see," Laperle said of Girard. "If he wants to run the whole season in Québec, I will. We're supposed to be having a meeting about it soon."

(Photo courtesy ACT)

Nation's Site of 'Smoke': Stewart to Compete at Thunder Road Governor's Cup

Officials from Barre's Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl confirmed on Tuesday evening that two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart will compete in the CARQUEST Vermont Governor's Cup 150 on Thursday, June 25, as part of the 50th anniversary season at "The Nation's Site of Excitement".

"Of all the people, in any form of racing, the one driver I wanted to help us celebrate the 50th anniversary of Thunder Road was Tony Stewart," said track co-owner and promoter Tom Curley. "I have always thought that Tony Stewart represents what stock car racing is supposed to be about. He will definitely be coming to race, and that is what Thunder Road fans and competitors expect."

To date, Stewart is a 33-time winner in Sprint Cup Series competition, earning the series' championship in 2002 and 2005 and the Rookie of the Year title in 1999. He also owns eight victories in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, including his season-opening win at Daytona (Fla.) Int'l Speedway, and finished a season-best third behind the wheel of his own Stewart-Hass Racing #14 Chevrolet in the Sprint Cup Series' Goody's 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway last weekend. "Smoke" currently ranks seventh in Sprint Cup point standings after the first six races.

Rumors swirling around a possible appearance by Stewart at Thunder Road began in early 2008 after he praised the track on his Sirius radio program, and were further fueled by an ambiguous "no comment" from track co-owner and promoter Tom Curley in January. Stewart and Thunder Road founder Ken Squier have reportedly been speaking about a deal to put Stewart in an American-Canadian Tour-legal Late Model at the track since 2007. A news column posted by Curley in February touted the planned appearances of two Sprint Cup-level drivers at the track; Stewart is the first to confirm his intentions to compete there.

Before Stewart, Sprint Cup Series drivers Kenny Wallace and Ken Schrader competed at Thunder Road; Wallace finished 12th in a regular 50-lap feature at Thunder Road in June 2007, while Schrader finished sixth at the Governor's Cup in 2006 and ninth in a 50-lap feature in 2005.

"Thunder Road has been on my list of short tracks I just had to race at in my career," Stewart said. "I have heard so much about this track from so many different people around the country."

Stewart said that some help from Schrader might aid him in his quest to win at Thunder Road. "Thanks to my friend Kenny Schrader for getting (Thunder Road) to add some laps to the Governor’s Cup," he said. "From what he tells me the competition is tough and whoever wins needs all the laps he can get." Schrader's start in the Governor's Cup event came when the race distance was 100 laps; officials raised the distance to 150 laps this year in honor of the 50th anniversary.

Stewart's appearance in the CARQUEST Vermont Governor's Cup 150 adds to the luster of the already highly anticipated race: it is one of four special events that will award the winner a starting berth in the inaugural ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September. The other three such events are the TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains (Me.) Speedway in July, and August's Center of Speed 150 at Wiscasset (Me.) Raceway and the Coors Light 200 "Showdown at Chaudière" at Autodrome Chaudière near Québec City. Should Stewart win the Governor's Cup at choose to compete at New Hampshire, NHMS officials will add an extra starting position to the field to allow another pre-qualified local Late Model driver to start the event.

In addition to his Sprint Cup and Nationwide success, Stewart owns victories in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and ARCA Re/Max Series, was the 2006 International Race of Champions (IROC) title winner, the 1997 Indy Racing League champion, the 1996 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year, and the first driver to win the USAC "Triple Crown" as he swept the Midget, Sprint Car, and Silver Crown championships in the same year.

Stewart is the owner of Ohio's Eldora Speedway, and is deeply involved in short track racing on both dirt and asphalt as a team owner and competitor.

(Photos courtesy NASCAR and http://www.tonystewart.com/)

NHMS "Invitational" is Just That

The northeastern stock car racing community has been abuzz about the first-ever American-Canadian Tour Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September, and justifiably so. But it seems that some of that group has overlooked one stipulation of the event: the word "Invitational."

Green-White-Checker's Travis Barrett is reporting that ACT President Tom Curley wants to make perfectly clear that the event is essentially open to all teams running an ACT-legal Late Model car, provided they gain the approval of ACT to compete in the 50-lap, $65,000 all-star race.

Race winners and point leaders or champions from the ACT Late Model Tour, the Série ACT-Castrol, and nine weekly Late Model tracks in the U.S. and Canada, including Barre's Thunder Road, as well as winners of three special non-championship events at Thunder Road, Maine's Oxford Plains Speedway, and Québec's Autodrome Chaudière, will be invited to compete at New Hampshire as long as they meet a level of previous experience and have a car with the proper safety equipement required by ACT to race at the fast 1.058-mile NHMS superspeedway.

"(The ACT Invitational) is not and never was intended to be an 'open house' for the 400-plus Late Models in our region to get to play around for an afternoon at New Hampshire Motor Speedway," Curley told Green-White-Checker. "By original design, we will put the most experienced and highest quality teams into New Hampshire to give us the maximum opportunity to have some success."

The potential for a rookie driver or backmarker with very little on-track experience but the right amount of luck to earn an NHMS starting berth exists, but raises many concerns.

"We cannot allow this to be a lark for someone who just wants to race at NHMS but has neither the equipment, the experience or existing knowledge to be successful both personally and for the good of the initial project," said Curley. "There are legitimate safety concerns that ACT must be aware of in issuing invitations. We must have confidence in the teams we are asking to participate in the event.

"Automatically giving an invitation to a (driver) that has very little experience in a Late Model, or may be in his first year of competition, would be irresponsible."

Dunbar racing for a reason

Travis Dunbar is like any other race driver on the track, striving to win, learning every week, and moving up to the next level as he progresses.

The man behind that racer, however, is in it for a much bigger cause; now entering his third full year of competition, the Hartland native is using his race car as a tool for promoting autism awareness and raising money to fight a disease that affects 1 in 150 children.

"I remember telling my wife, 'I've got to do something,'" Dunbar said. Read the full story at Green-White-Checker.

Chase and Laperle Carry ACT Banner at New Smyrna's World Series

Milton's Eric Chase (left) and defending American-Canadian Tour Champion Patrick Laperle of St-Denis, Que. will carry the northern colors at New Smyrna Speedway's 43rd Annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing in New Smyrna, Fla. Chase will attempt to defend his opening night 2008 victory on Friday in the ASA/Crate-type Late Model division. The ACT veteran captured the opening round during the traditional nine-night winter championship series at the fast half-mile last February, and, with teammate Ryan Nolin splitting time in the car, finished seventh in point standings despite skipping the final race.

"Just like last year, we're just going down to have some fun and race our car," said Chase.

In 2008, Chase posted the first main-event victory of his career at the 25-lap World Series opener on Friday, Feb. 8, surviving three red-flag periods for violent crashes, including one that took fellow ACT competitor Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. out of the race. Chase earned a seventh-place finish the following night, while Nolin posted finishes of eighth, 21st, and 16th in his three starts. Chase withdrew from the final race after a lackluster qualifying effort.

Nolin will reportedly not be sharing driving duties with Chase in the Gary Clay Builders/Mansfield Heliflight #40 car in this year's World Series.

Laperle is also competing in the ASA/Crate division, and like Chase, is considered one of the early favorites for the championship. According to Laperle, it sounds like he'll be hard to beat. Laperle reported Thursday night that his car performed so well it seemed "too easy" in practice sessions during the day. "If it stays like this all week, we could have a lot of fun," he said confidently.

Multi-time ACT Canadian Champion Claude Leclerc of Lanoraie, Que. helped Chase's team on Thursday, substituing in the driver's seat for Chase, who was on a business trip to Paris, France. Chase is scheduled to arrive in New Smyrna on Friday morning.

The World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing opens on Friday evening, with NASCAR Tour-type Modifieds, SK Modifieds, Super Late Models, Late Models, and Florida/IMCA-type Modifieds joining the ASA/Crate-type Late Models on the card. The ASA/Crate division runs cars with chassis similar to ACT Late Models, but larger engines and 10-inch tires are permitted.

The ASA/Crate division has the most official entries filed of any of the seven divisions competing at New Smyrna, with 32 drivers pre-registered. Polewarczyk, however, confirmed that despite filing an entry, he will not be competing in 2009. Among the pre-entered drivers are Hendrick Motorsports driver Landon Cassill of Cedar Rapids, Ia., Kawartha (Ont.) Speedway regular Shaun McWhirter, and NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Jerick Johnson of Mooresville, N.C. Logan Ruffin, who at age 13 was last year's ASA/Crate division champion, has not filed an entry for this year's World Series.

The ASA/Crate division is scheduled to compete on seven nights, including Friday and Saturday this week, and each weeknight next week. The division's finale will be a 50-lap race on Friday, Feb. 13. Stay tuned to Vermont Motorsports Magazine, Green-White-Checker, and The Backstretch for New Smyrna Speedway coverage.

(Photo courtesy http://www.nolinracing.com/)

Green-White-Checker Doing its Part in 2009

Green-White-Checker will make every appearance count in 2009.

In 12 years, Racing Against Cancer has raised more than $600,000 for the American Cancer Society. This year, the motorsports Web site http://www.greenwhitechecker.info/ is going to hold its own "Race Against Cancer" at tracks across New England and beyond in an effort to combat this horrific disease for which there still is no cure.

Green-White-Checker founder and editor Travis Barrett will donate $5 for every race day he attends in 2009. Last year, Barrett devoted a total of 75 calendar days to covering motorsports at all levels, and he is hopeful to eclipse that number in the coming season, beginning next week at Daytona International Speedway and New Smyrna Speedway in New Smyrna Beach, Fla.

"It’s not much, but I know that every little bit helps," said Barrett, who founded Green-White-Checker in early 2008 and reaches an average of more than 3,000 readers daily. "We all know somebody who has been affected by cancer on some level, and I really feel like this fundraiser will give all those trips to the races this summer a little extra meaning."

Four short tracks in northern New England have already agreed to participate in the fundraising efforts. Promoters at Oxford Plains (Me.) Speedway, Thunder Road International (Vt.) Speedbowl, Unity (Me.) Raceway and Wiscasset (Me.) Raceway have all agreed to either match Barrett’s $5 per race pledge or make a flat donation at season’s end. More are welcome.

Race fans are also encouraged to seek Barrett out at events throughout 2009 to make their own donations to the event.

"We’re really excited to be joining forces with Green-White-Checker," said Scott Gregory, the director of operations at Racing Against Cancer. "We’re happy that Travis approached us about the project, and we appreciate all the support out there."

Racing Against Cancer was founded by Jon Blanchette in 1996, two years after he lost his wife, Jodi, to the disease. He got the ball rolling at his wife’s insistence before her passing.

"It was her dream to make something good come from all she went through," Blanchette said in the fall of 2007.

For more information, visit http://www.greenwhitechecker.info/ or http://www.racingagainstcancer.com/.